“My goal is to radically reduce the college’s reliance on part-time faculty to teach traditional students,” said Adrienne Israel, academic dean and coordinator of the search process for new faculty.
Eleven tenure-track positions need filling, from writing director to psychology professor to business management professorto work in computer information systems.
Guilford now employs its lowest number of tenure-track faculty – about 70 – in many years, according to Israel.
The various searches are at different stages, with college writing director narrowed to three candidates, who by print-time have all visited campus and interviewed for the position. Three other searches, for computing and information technology, psychology, and history, are underway on campus, scheduled through early February.
Carolyn Beard Whitlow, who as clerk of faculty chairs the clerks committee, declined to comment on the search process “while it is ongoing.” The clerks committee decides which positions to allocate as requested by departments.
Other searches, such as that for a professor of art/sculpting, are still slimming to a final group of three from an initial pool in the range of ten. “We received 70 to 80 applications to begin with,” said Adele Wayman, painting professor and part of that search team.
Additionally, the political science department searched last semester for Andrea Gerlak’s replacement. Gerlak, who with Dave Dobson began the environmental studies major, left Guilford in the fall of last year.
The search committee has chosen a candidate, who by press-time has not yet signed a contract.
According to Israel, a lag in the two-year process of adding a faculty member is the reason Guilford is especially behind.
The problem grew in part, Israel says, from a “misplaced strategy with enrollment.” The current senior class is the smallest in 20 years, in part because of an emphasis by former enrollment staff to seek out-of-state applications and to stress less recruitment in the areas from where Guilford students traditionally come.
When paired with student dissatisfaction and retention problems, budgets needed cutting, and a drop in faculty resulted.
“Enrollment is back up with Randy [Doss]. It helps that he’s a graduate, and the increase requires that we rebuild faculty,” Israel said.
Enter lag: a department, having too few professors, applies for a new position with the Clerks Committee. If Clerks approves the need, the Budget Committee then decides affordability. If Budget authorizes a search, then, after final approval from the president of the college, the search begins.
In the meantime, the school hires part-time faculty to fill the gap.
“Part-time teachers teach experimental classes that aren’t a permanent part of the curriculum,” Israel said. “When we hire them, we’re not sure how long they’ll stay.”
Values in the Process
After the committee for each position trims the initial pool of applications to around nine or 10, the committee interviews each hopeful, choosing three to come on campus to talk with students, president Kent Chabotar, Israel, and assorted others, like Tim Lindeman, one of the clerks committee representatives.
Alison Duncan, who as an English major watched a candidate for writing director teach Guilford students, “enjoyed the potential professor. The English faculty who are tenured are fantastic – that’s why I changed my major from math to English.”
Duncan stated dissatisfaction with non-tenure-tract English department faculty.
“I trust the process that gave me a good candidate,” Duncan said.
Student evaluations like these are heavily valued, according to Israel. The search committee recommends one final choice to her as academic dean, then to the president, who has the final say.
“It takes a long time, but it’s worth replacing part-time faculty, who teach one class and then leave,” Israel said. “That’s not the attention a student deserves.”
“We need people who teach beyond office hours,” she said.
The college also looks for balanced scholarly potential, enthusiasm and commitment to teaching, evidence of character, and commitment to teaching, according to the office of human resources, which publicizes the openings.
The search aims for the pools of 10 to have racial and ethnic diversity, diversity in sexual orientation, international diversity, and/or Quakers.
“There are two Quakers in the pool of around 10 for the art department search,” Adele Wayman said, “as well as Heea Crownfield, a Guilford grad.”
Crownfield is now in her second year as a non-tenure-track, temporary full-time faculty.
The college publicizes the openings in diverse places, according to Israel, who added that Max Carter, director of the Friends Center, helps spread the word among Quaker circles. Openings are also listed on websites for scholars of color, Israel said.
Each search files a diversity report on its efforts to find candidates of varying backgrounds. For the writing director spot, for example, the committee had to explain why it yielded three white, non-Quaker men. However, two of the three are gay.
“The way the college needs faculty to work interdisciplinarily also limits the availability of applicants,” Israel said, pointing to the geology department position, which requires a “background in hydrology, structural geology, and geophysics; strengths in environmental studies; broad interests and versatility in the earth sciences and strong commitment to undergraduate teaching in a liberal arts institution,” according to the job description.
“Some fields are harder than others,” Israel said.
“We’ll probably have to hire more next year too – we still have a shortage of tenure-track faculty.”